The Lincolns

Intent on eroding the stereotype that Mary was mad and Abraham was saintly, Epstein utilizes some new sources to create a portrait of the Lincolns' marriage. In coolly objective tones, Adam Grupper narrates Epstein's detailed account of the couple's early years. Their turbulent courtship included a broken engagement that might be attributed to Lincoln's infection with syphilis. Epstein paints a picture of a couple deeply connected, both in romance and politics, from Springfield to the White House. Grupper's nasal timbre is well suited to this work, which is narrative heavy. He reads most of the dialogue plainly, but his few forays into accents are distracting. Although Grupper trods a bit heavily on Epstein's occasional poetic passages, overall, his informative reading fits the text well. N.M.C. (c) AudioFile 2008, Portland, Maine

September 15, 2008
Acclaimed biographer and prize-winning Lincoln scholar Epstein (Lincoln and Whitman) here takes an in-depth look at Abraham Lincoln and wife Mary Todd's multifaceted relationship, from their courtship to his 1865 assassination. Using new resources, he breaths fresh life into their story, creating a dense and highly complex but enjoyable read. The steadily paced delivery by actor/narrator Adam Grupper (The Google Story) will keep listeners engaged. Recommended. [Discs indexed inaudibly at the start of each chapter and at regular intervals throughout; audio clip available through www.bbcaudiobooksamerica.comScott R. DiMarco, Mansfield Univ. Lib., PA

Copyright 2008 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

March 17, 2008
Poet and biographer Epstein (Lincoln and Whitman: Parallel Lives in Civil War Washington
) never explains the rationale for this reliable but familiar account of the Lincolns’ frequently tempestuous marriage. If he had access to previously untapped sources, he does nothing to highlight them, and there’s little reason why this book should supersede either Jean H. Baker’s magisterial Mary Todd Lincoln: A Biography
or even Ruth Painter Randall’s respected Mary Lincoln: Biography of a Marriage
. What Epstein brings is a novelistic, almost lyrical touch, as in this passage, from Mary’s perspective, as her husband lay dying: “Slowly the room grows larger with the light. The April days are long. Hold back the light. Let the day never dawn that looks upon his death.” Well born, Mary was also highly strung, insecure, jealous and, like Abraham, prone to fits of depression. He suffered her rages silently, tolerated her profligate spending even when it became a political embarrassment and twice consoled her in the midst of his own grief upon the successive losses of two of their four sons. Sadly, in the end, their marriage seems to have been largely a pageant of tragedies: a black lily Epstein need not have attempted to gild.